Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is now accepting film submissions for its 13th edition, which will be held from December 7th 14th 2016. DIFF boasted a 10% increase from 2014 with members of the community turning out to watch an impressive slate of international, regional and local films over the eight day event. The […]
Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is now accepting film submissions for its 13th edition, which will be held from December 7th 14th 2016.
DIFF boasted a 10% increase from 2014 with members of the community turning out to watch an impressive slate of international, regional and local films over the eight day event.
The highly contested Muhr competition featured 60 Arab films further highlighting the increased audience appetite for independent Arab films.
The Muhr Gulf Short Category was introduced last year into competition to promote greater understanding and appreciation of the unique stories from the incredible talent across the Gulf region. In its inaugural year, DIFF received a high number of submissions from Saudi Arabia and Iraq and this year are urging filmmakers from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Yemen to submit fiction and non-fiction shorts to introduce audiences to a wider range of innovative work so as to truly reflect the strength of talent from across the Gulf.
DIFF is now accepting entries for feature fiction and non-fiction; and short films originating from the United Arab Emirates and the Arab world, which will compete for the prestigious Muhr Awards.
As the only Arab film festival that qualifies to contribute short films for Oscar consideration, the Muhr Arab short that picks up Best Film will be eligible for entry into the Academys 2017 competition.
Over the years, the competition has helped to raise the profiles of award recipients on the international stage. Basil Khalils Ave Maria’ took home the prestigious Muhr Award for Best Short Film at the 12th edition and competed at the recent 88th Academy Awards in Los Angeles. Last year, Muhr Award winning filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad was nominated for an Oscar for his feature film Omar, which was supported by DIFFs Enjaaz post-production support programme.
For the past ten years, the Muhr competition has celebrated the imagination and excellence of Arab filmmaking from both established and emerging talent.
DIFFs Artistic Director, Masoud Amralla Al Ali commented: This is an exceptional time for Arab cinema and I want to congratulate our Arab film talent who are excelling at award ceremonies including the Oscars and the BAFTAs and winning the highest honours at prestigious film festivals such as Cannes and Berlin. This is an exciting time and I am thrilled that DIFFs Muhr competition is playing a crucial role in discovering incredible talent and promoting Arab films to ensure homegrown talent remains firmly in the spotlight on the world stage.
Narrative features, documentaries and short films directed by a filmmaker of Arab nationality or origin are all eligible for entry, and filmmakers have until August 31st, 2016 to enter their films. Films must have been produced after September 2015.
